LANDRIE: It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Lawrence Oliver Landrie "Mushum" on October 14, 2013 at the age of 66 years. Left to cherish Lawrence's passing are his loving children: Sons: Doyle (Nina), grandchildren Jessie-Lee, Billie-Jean, Shayla, and Skye, great-grandchildren Keiana, Kaze, and Lex; Dayle (Denise), grandchildren Katey, Leah, and Axl; Daughters: Kim, grandson Cody; Nikole (John), grandchildren Brenden, Brooke, and Taylor; Dazawray (Chris), grandchildren Kyler and Kashton; his sisters: Val, Pearl (Ron), Gail, and Violet; brothers Wilfred, Richard (Barb), and Gordon (Zeta); as well as numerous nieces, nephews, and many good friends. He is predeceased by his parents Jim and Mable; sisters Myrtle, Monica, and Thelma; and grandson Caleb. EULOGY by Shelly Read For those of you who don't know me, my name is Shelley Read, niece of Lawrence. It's a great honour to be asked here today to speak the eulogy of Uncle Lawrence. Thank you to everyone who is here today to pay tribute to the famous Lawrence Oliver Landrie, otherwise known as Mushum. As I learned from his passing, my heart was crushed. This is a sad day for each and every one of us here today. We have lost such a great person and a real troubadour. Sharing our grief will help us ease our burden of sadness, so let's pull together today and honour Lawrence for the man, father, mushum, uncle, cousin, friend and ladies' man he was. Lawrence Oliver Landrie was born October 23, 1946 to his parents Jim and Mable Landrie. He was in the middle of 11 children. As a young boy, Uncle Lawrence was raised in Sundre and Olds, Alberta. Most of his years were spent in North Battleford. Uncle Lawrence was an altar boy at Notre Dame Church and attended Notre Dame school. He delivered papers for a number of years in his school days. Uncle Lawrence worked with his dad, older brother Wilfred, cousins, and the Ross boys. At the young age of 14, Uncle Lawrence ventured into the workforce. In his mid-20s, he obtained his apprenticeship in carpentry and cabinet making, which became his lifelong career working in the three Western provinces. One of his greatest and proudest accomplishments was to work with his sons and their company DLD Builders Inc. The next best thing he was so very proud of was spending all the quality time with his children, grandchildren, family, and friends. Uncle Lawrence will also be remembered for his passion and love of horses. How he loved to rope and ride, this gave him free spirit and demeanor. There is not a time where he did not miss a rodeo or trail ride so that he could hang out with family and friends that shared the same passion he did. The Calgary Stampede and the Canadian Finals Rodeo were his favourite events to attend. He always made a grand entrance and had a good time with whomever he was cheering on or just hanging out with. He was so proud of Billie Jean, Kristen, and Deserae for their barrel racing accomplishments. The year Desarae won the PIRA Finals to compete for a title in Indian International Finals Rodeo in Chandler, Arizona, he said "Don't worry, I'll be your driver." He was, and supported and cheered her on. What a road trip that was, one we will never forget. As a young man, his firstborn was his beautiful daughter Kim. As time went on, Lawrence met Yvonne Ouellette. They married, and had their sons Doyle and Dale. Uncle Lawrence and Auntie Yvonne divorced, and Uncle Lawrence moved on to his second marriage to Debbie and they had their daughters Nicole and Dazawray. As time passed, Uncle Lawrence and Debbie went their separate ways. Uncle Lawrence then lived his life among his family and friends . Uncle Lawrence resided in Glaslyn for about the last 15 years, to which he called home. Most people knew Uncle Lawrence as a very stern and proud man. Surprisingly to many of you, he also loved to tell jokes and hear them told as well. So in note of his name, Lawrence Oliver Landrie, his initials are LOL, which also stands for Lots of Love and Lots of Laughter. He could have you rolling on the floor crying with laughter. We will all miss spending that time joking with him and his positive attitude. But, if you ever did piss him off you better have your running shoes on, with that stern voice hollering at you and his big hands shaking at you. He definitely would get his point across when need be. This is a memory to be shared. Uncle Lawrence was the "Cando" type of guy. He wasn't scared to try anything. If he didn't know how to do it, he would figure it out. He could tackle anything. One time he, Rick, and Rocky were working for Ducks Unlimited, building a dam. One the first day of work the Ducks Unlimited guy came walking with his roll of blueprints. He laid them out and started explaining how the dam was to be built. After about a half hour he looks at them sitting there all glassy-eyed and asked if "they" got it. Lawrence looks at him and says "Yep, now draw it on my cigarette pack." The guy did and they built the dam. Yes, that was Uncle Lawrence, all of his notes to his cigarette pack. He would never lose it because he always had a pack in his shirt pocket. Speaking of this reminds me of a story of his smoking days. We were on one of our many trips to the CFR. We stopped in Lloydminster for gas and of course he has a cigarette lit. The pump attendant asks him to put it out or he won't be able to fuel up his car. Uncle Lawrence says "it's my smoke, I'll smoke it when and where I want." The attendant once more asks him to put his cigarette out, and Uncle Lawrence says "F___ YOU, it's my smoke!" throws the car into drive, steps on the gas, and away we go, with him yelling at the attendant that he'll get his gas elsewhere. Oh my, what could I do but hang on. Yes, that was my uncle. And each and every one of you has a story to tell of him. A memory from Skye and Shayla of how Mushum would buy them things and always say he found these treasures on the road. Shayla would always ask "mushum how come these shirts always fit us?" And he would tell them you got to find just the right road. So every time the girls ventured down a road they were always looking for a bag like mushum did, until a couple of years ago they realized that mushum really did buy the gifts for them. A memory from Miranda: Uncle Lawrence lived his life to the fullest and always had a joke and a smile. I have memories of laughing with him until my tummy hurt and being spoiled with gifts and treasures. We texted back and forth and sent photos to stay in touch, and I am so blessed to have these to keep. I will cherish our memories and send smiles and hugs to all. Love, your godchild, Randi Dawn When I had my children, they heard the many stories of Uncle Lawrence and how influential he was in my life. He truly inspired me. He was a strong man of honour, pride, and a huge heart of gold. He would give the shirt off his back to anyone who needed it, and that he truly did for me and my family. Fifteen years ago this month, our house burned down to nothing but a hole in the ground. It was devastating. We lost everything, but my family was together. Uncle Lawrence was given a phone call. At this time he was working up in Northern Alberta. He said to me, "Don't worry my girl, I'm on my way." He was back in Asquith the very next day. He lived at Jeunitta at this time in a little one bedroom house. He said to me, "Here my girl, you and your family live here. I'm going to build you a home." So there Brad and I and out three children lived in his house with Uncle Lawrence hanging out with us. He had our home built and ready to move in at the end of the following April. Truly amazing how he and the DLD Builders Crew got this all done considering it was probably one of the coldest winters ever with so much snow. Amazing his hard working hands. Now that's a man with a heart of gold. Once again, a real troubadour. About seven years ago, Uncle Lawrence was diagnosed with cancer. This nasty disease was not taking him down. He lived his life to the fullest. It was this past summer that the cancer started to take over the proud man he was. He did not let this have a negative impact on him at all, always being strong a positive for the fight he was enduring. Then on the morning of October 14, 2013, Uncle Lawrence decided he was tired and peacefully went to God's gate to sleep. There he is now, looking upon each and every one of us here, telling us please don't cry, I am in a safe haven now. Strange how life recircles itself. He was given his first breath on this earth October 23, 1946 and will be taken to the dust of the earth today, October 23, 2013. Happy Birthday Uncle Lawrence. I will miss you and that big hearty smile, that twinkle in your eyes, and your finger always pointing. I truly appreciate everything you have done for me, your family, and your friends. I also thank you for teaching family and friends life's experiences and giving so many wonderful memories. You will not be forgotten. I love you. Doyle, Dale, Kim, Nicole, and Dazawray, your spouses, and all of his beautiful grandchildren - I want you to know he was so very proud of you and spoke of you with a smile on his face. In his heart he will forever and eternally love you all and now will be watching over you with guidance from up above. Love you all. The family of Lawrence Landrie wish to express a very heartfelt thanks to their relatives, friends, and neighbours for all the wonderful support. Without all your acts of kindness, thoughtfulness, and support, our loss would have been much harder to bear. Thanks to Pastor Dale Ramsay for a very nice service and to everyone who brought lunch, it was excellent. Thank you to Shelley Read for the very well-put-together eulogy and to Linda Chamagne for sharing very meaningful words and special stories written by Aunty Val Schmidt. It was tough for everyone - thanks so much! Thanks to Aunty Cori, Shannon, Sheila, Rhoda, Vergil, Jason, Shasta, Jessie, Billie, Shayla, and Skye for getting "Hooves to Heaven" for Lawrence's last ride; what a beautiful team of horses. Thanks to Dayle and Axl Landrie for riding with the team. Thanks so much to Alex Greer and Darcy Pritchett for helping with the 4 saddle horses. Thanks to Jessie, Billie, Shayla, and Skye for riding their 4 Palomino saddle horses behind their mushum. Thanks so much to Bev Huggins for supplying the much-needed and very appreciated room at the Gold Eagle Lodge for Doyle and Nina. Thanks to Carl Ross for bringing his amp, guitar, and Carl, Elmer Trotchie, and Walter Dumont for singing a few of Lawrence's favourite ol country tunes at the lunch. The songs were very appreciated and sounded great, bringing back warm memories of good times. Thanks to Tim Taylor and Aunty Lena Vallentgood for bringing all the beautiful flowers that were handed out at the gravesite, and our apologies and thanks to anyone we may have missed. Thanks to Natasha and Kristeen of Sallows and McDonald - Wilson and Zehner Funeral Home for helping us get through this difficult time. To all who sent floral arrangements, and cards, Thank You. We sincerely appreciate all the sympathetic visits, calls, and prayers. It is of enormous comfort to us to be reminded of the many, many friends Lawrence had. Our sincere best wishes to all of you. The Funeral Service to celebrate Lawrence's life was held on Wednesday, October 23, 2013 from the Don Ross Centre, 891-99th Street, North Battleford, with Pastor Dale Ramsay officiating. Hooves to Heaven provided Lawrence's last ride, on his way to the interment at the Town of Battleford Cemetery. Funeral arrangements were entrusted to Sallows and McDonald - Wilson and Zehner Funeral Home, North Battleford. (306) 445-2418. A cowboy rides in heaven.
